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I found converting
a stock positive earth Land Rover electrical system to negative
earth to be surprisingly easy. This conversion allowed me to connect
a CB and radio to my electrical system.
Only three items on a stock positive earth Land Rover electrical
system care what the polarity of the system is, the ammeter, coil
and the generator.
Cables
First I disconnected my battery cables and checked them carefully
for wear. I cleaned the terminals and the cable connectors. Next
I turned the battery around so that the cables would reach the proper
terminals. Besides checking the battery cables and cleaning their
connections at both ends, I also checked the cable between the engine
and frame. This cable provides a good ground for the starter motor
and the spark plugs.
The steps I took to do the conversion:
- Disconnected and removed battery. This was a good time to clean
out and repaint the battery tray.
- Switched the leads on the ammeter. The ammeter has two connecting
clips. I Just moved the wires from one side to the other.
- Switched the low voltage leads on the coil. I disconnected the
leads, loosened the clamp on the coil holder, rotated the coil
180 degrees and reconnect the wires. That preserved the lead routing.
- Disconnected the small wire on the generator. The connection
post is labeled F or field.
- Placed the battery back into the battery tray in the opposite
direction as it was sitting. Reattached the hold down.
- Connected the clean ground connector to the negative terminal
of the battery
- Took a length of insulated wire and connected one end to the
battery's positive terminal. Touched the other end of the wire
to the field (F) terminal of the generator a couple of times.
This generally produces a spark. Removed the wire from the battery.
That operation re-polarized the generator.
- Reconnected the wire I previously disconnected from the field
(F) of the generator
- Attached the battery cable leading to the starter solenoid to
the positive terminal of the battery.
I was done
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